4 - read the comments in `config.h' and edit it as appropriate
6 - make install install.man
8 The xscreensaver program waits until the keyboard and mouse have been idle
9 for a period, and then runs a graphics demo chosen at random. It turns off
10 as soon as there is any mouse or keyboard activity.
12 The purpose of xscreensaver is to display pretty pictures on your screen
13 when it is not in use, in keeping with the philosophy that unattended
14 monitors should always be doing something interesting, just like they do
17 However, xscreensaver can also be used as a screen locker, to prevent
18 others from using your terminal while your are away.
20 The benefit that this program has over the combination of the xlock and
21 xautolock programs is the ease with which new graphics hacks can be
22 installed: you don't need to recompile this program to add a new display
23 mode, you just change some resource settings. Any program which can be
24 invoked in such a way that it draws on the root window of the screen can
25 now be used as a screensaver without modification. The programs that
26 are being run as screensavers don't need to have any special knowledge
27 about what it means to be a screensaver.
29 The XIDLE or MIT-SCREEN-SAVER server extensions will be used if you have
32 Unfortunately, locking doesn't work if you don't have Motif.
34 Also included are several graphics hacks for use as screensavers. There's
35 nothing magic about these: they're just programs that draw on the root
36 window, which are pointed at by the screensaver's default resource settings.
38 qix - My own implementation of this, with many more options
39 than you would have thought qix could have.
40 helix - Generates spirally "stringart" patterns.
41 pedal - Draws a different kind of spirally pattern.
42 rorschach - Random inkblot patterns.
43 attraction - A bouncing ball demo, or a qix-like demo, or a wild
44 color-cycling thing, with some odd rules.
45 greynetic - Random colored/stippled rectangles.
46 rocks - Flying through an asteroid field.
47 blitspin - Rotate a bitmap using bitblts.
48 imsmap - Generates random maps or cloud formations.
49 hypercube - 2d projection of a hypercube rotating on all four axes.
50 slidescreen - Divides the screen into a grid and plays a 16-puzzle on it.
51 decayscreen - A melting effect.
52 halo - Random circular patterns.
53 pyro - Fireworks. Looks a lot like the version in xlock.
54 hopalong - Fractals. I snarfed this code from xlock.
55 flame - Fractals. Also from xlock.
56 noseguy - A guy with a big nose wanders around the screen saying
57 things. I snarfed this code from xnlock.
58 maze - This is the X maze demo modified to take a -root option
59 so that it works with xscreensaver.
61 All of these will pop up their own window unless given that -root option.
62 See their man pages for more details.
64 Other reasonable things to use as screensavers, if you have them, are
66 xdaliclock -root -builtin2 - melting digital clock
67 xswarm -r 2>&- - swimming sperm
68 xwave -root - random 3d graphs
69 xbouncebits - bounce arbitrary bitmaps around
70 ico -r - it's dull, but it's there
71 xv -root file.gif -quit - they don't all have to animate!
72 xsplinefun - bouncing splines
73 kaleid -root - qix-like kaleidescope patterns
74 xfishtank -c black -d -r 1 - fish (use version 2.0 or later)
76 You can get all of these from the contrib directory on ftp.x.org. If you
77 know of (or write) any other interesting programs that can be used as
78 screensavers, please let me know!
80 This program should be updated to take advantage of the new R6 `screensaver'
81 server extension instead of XIdle. I didn't have time to do this before the
82 deadline for the R6 contrib tape, but by the time you read this, maybe it's
83 done - check a later release.
85 The latest version of xscreensaver is on FTP.X.ORG.
87 -- Jamie Zawinski <jwz@mcom.com>
90 Changes since 1.24: Made it capture the stdout/stderr of its subprocesses
91 and present them on the screensaver window itself.
92 Made demo mode work correctly with non-default visuals
93 and color maps, instead of always using the defaults.
94 Added -visual argument to all included screenhacks.
95 Support for the R6 MIT-SCREEN-SAVER server extension.
96 Made the demo mode list scroll properly.
98 Changes since 1.23: Fixed some private-colormap oddities in slidescreen,
99 decayscreen, and xroger. Fixed apparent conservation-
100 of-mass problem in pyro; made the shrapnel round.
101 Changes since 1.22: Minor tweaks for IRIX5; fixed locking race condition.
102 Changes since 1.21: Minor tweaks for X11R6.
103 Fixes for non-default visuals.
104 Changes since 1.20: Fixed bug in color blitspin; added default image.
105 Added diagnostics to noseguy. Fixed off-by-one
106 error in flame. Added some missing casts.
107 Changes since 1.18: Added `flame' hack.
108 Fixed a minor Motif dialog text field bug.
109 Fixed yet another XPointer-not-defined-in-R4 bug.
110 Changes since 1.17: Added support for shadow password files.
111 Fixed some Motif-related locking bugs.
112 Added diagnostics when locking is disabled.
113 Made blitspin able to use the XPM library.
114 Added `decayscreen' hack.
115 Changes since 1.16: Added `halo' hack.
116 Changes since 1.15: Portability fixes.
117 Changes since 1.14: Broke the driver up into more source files.
118 Moved the hacks into their own directory.
119 Made all `time' parameters accept the 00:00:00 syntax,
120 so that even the parameters which are normally read as
121 `minutes' can be specified in seconds.
122 Added colormap cycling to `imsmap'.
123 Made hyper work with K&R compilers.
124 Changes since 1.13: Added `orbit' option to `attraction' hack.
125 Added `lock-timeout' option.
126 Cleaned up options of `maze' hack.
127 Changes since 1.8: Added demo mode, and locking.
129 Added `norotate' option to `rocks' hack.
projects / xscreensaver / blob